(i) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a novel microorganism belonging to the genus Torulopsis.
(ii) Description of the Prior Art
Sophorose, which is useful as a substance capable of promoting the production of cellulase by bacteria and also as a raw material for cosmetics, was found out for the first time as the sugar component of the camphelol glycoside contained in the shells of fruits of Sophora japonica L. However, it is seldom obtained as a free disaccharide in the natural world. It is only known that sophorose is contained as a free disaccharide in royal jelly.
On the other hand, no production of sophorose by bacteria has yet been known except that Khan et al observed the formation of sophorose in small amounts in the course of their investigations on the formation of oligo-saccharides by microorganisms belonging to genus of bacterial Acetobacter [A. W. Khan et al, Nature, 183, 682(1959); T. K. Walker et al., Arch. Biochem. Biophys., 83, 161(1959)].
Under the above-mentioned present circumstances, it has been desired to find out sophorose-producing microorganisms urgently.